May 6 NEVADA: June 9 execution scheduled at Nevada State Prison A June 9 execution was scheduled Thursday by Nevada prison officials for Robert Lee McConnell, 33, sentenced to die for raping his ex-girlfriend and murdering her fiance. The former Reno resident has said he won't file any appeals or petitions that would automatically stop his execution by injection at the Nevada State Prison in Carson City. State Prisons Director Jackie Crawford scheduled the execution following a Washoe County District Court appearance last week by McConnell, who said he spoke with prosecutors and agreed that his execution in early June "would be fine." McConnell pleaded guilty to shooting Brian Pierce, 25, 10 times with a handgun in August 2002 at the Sun Valley home that Pierce shared with a woman McConnell previously dated. After killing Pierce, McConnell hid the body in a back bedroom and waited for the woman to return from work, police said. He then raped her and forced her to drive to the San Francisco Bay area, where she escaped when they stopped at a service station. In July 2003, a Washoe County jury sentenced McConnell to death for the murder and to two life prison terms for the rape and kidnapping. He fired his court-appointed lawyers and represented himself during the sentencing proceedings - agreeing with a prosecutor who called him an evil man who deserved no mercy. During the penalty phase of the trial, jurors heard a taped phone call from McConnell to his father, in which McConnell said Pierce was reaching for a door and "I shot him 10 times before he hit the ground." Michael Pescetta, a federal public defender who specializes in death penalty cases, said his office has been in contact with McConnell, is aware of the death row inmate's interests and isn't sure if there will be an attempt to appeal over his wishes. A mandatory, automatic appeal to the state Supreme Court already has been rejected. If McConnell is executed, he'd become the 12th person to die in Nevada following the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in the 1970s that cleared the way for capital punishment to resume in this country. Ten of those who died in Nevada since then were, like McConnell, volunteers who declined to file further appeals that would have kept them alive. The last execution in Nevada was that of Terry Jess Dennis, who died in August 2004 for strangling a woman in a Reno motel in 1999. Also in 2004, Lawrence Colwell Jr. was executed for strangling of an elderly tourist in Las Vegas. (source: Associated Press) ********************** DONTE JOHNSON MURDER CASE: Jury returns death penalty----Victims' families criticize judge, claim his rulings favored killer Shortly after a jury sentenced Donte Johnson to death Thursday, the victims' families accused District Judge Lee Gates of trying to protect the quadruple murderer from capital punishment. "Part way through the trial, I thought maybe he'd adopted Donte Johnson," said David Mowen, father of murder victim Matthew Mowen. "It was just very clear he was favoring Donte Johnson in every decision." Johnson's defense attorney, Bret Whipple, said criticisms of the judge were off-target. Gates, he said, was being extra cautious in his rulings in an effort to ensure that the 7-year-old criminal case will not be reversed again by a higher court. "He's trying to protect the record so that this doesn't continue to come back and cost the taxpayers money," Whipple said. "He was very fair to the taxpayers of this state." Johnson showed no reaction when he was sentenced to death a 2nd time for a lethal 1998 house robbery in southeast Las Vegas. Authorities said Johnson and two co-defendants restrained 4 young men with duct tape, and Johnson then executed each one with a shot to the head in a robbery that netted a couple hundred dollars, a video game player, a VCR and a pager. Killed in the slayings were Matthew Mowen, 19; Tracey Gorringe, 20; Jeffrey Biddle, 19; and Peter Talamantez, 17. Johnson was sentenced to death in 2000 by a panel of three judges, but the sentence was negated by the Nevada Supreme Court in 2002 after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that such sentences should be left to juries. On Thursday, jurors took about 4 hours to determine that Johnson should die for the crime. Afterward, family members of Johnson's victims criticized Gates for what they perceived as a string of rulings that favored Johnson. For example, Gates organized the penalty hearing into 2 phases. Johnson's family was permitted to testify in the first phase, but the victims' families were not. That first phase ended when jurors decided that an aggravating factor of the crime -- the perpetration of multiple murders -- should be given more legal weight than the fact of Johnson coming from a troubled background. Families of the victims then were permitted to testify to their loss in the second phase, which ended in the death sentence returned Thursday. Gates also excluded testimony about Johnson's alleged involvement in another murder and a shooting even though both crimes had been detailed in prior proceedings; he barred the media on Wednesday from a brief hearing that probed the discovery of a crack pipe in the jury box; and he limited the number of photos of victims that loved ones could display during their victim impact testimony. Johnson's family faced no corresponding restrictions. "Limiting the family members, that probably hurt the worst," said Sandy Viau, mother of Gorringe. Family members said they were offended by Gates' gruff demeanor and his threats to arrest anyone who displayed emotion during the proceedings. For example, shortly before the verdict was read Thursday morning, Gates announced to the courtroom: "I'm not going to tolerate any demonstrations." Referring to any violators, he told an officer, "I want them handcuffed and under arrest." The comments clearly were directed at the family members of the victims because Johnson's family wasn't even in the courtroom. "I almost felt like I was disrespected for walking in there," David Mowen said. Gates could not be reached for comment Thursday despite two messages left at his office. A judge is prohibited by court rules from commenting on a pending case, and Gates still has to sentence Johnson formally in a week. Fellow District Court Judge Michael Cherry said Gates' decision to limit the number of photos displayed by victims' family members eliminated Johnson's ability to raise that issue on appeal. "He tried the case tight," Cherry said. "He took away a bunch of issues from the defense ... and the case will probably not be reversed." Authorities said Johnson was a crack dealer who happened to be at a southeast Las Vegas home when one of the victims, Mowen, bragged about making some money selling drugs and pizzas while attending concerts by the rock band Phish. Johnson then concocted the idea to rob Mowen and his roommates with two co-defendants, Terrell Young and Sikia Smith. Each victim was restrained with duct tape and shot, but Johnson left behind a cigar pack with his fingerprint on it. Blood from one of the victims also was found on Johnson's pants. Witnesses said Johnson bragged of committing the crimes, saying blood spurted out of the victims' heads "like Niagara Falls." He also mocked the victims' grunting noises as they were being killed. Prosecutors Robert Daskas and Dave Stanton said the horrific nature of the crime made Johnson a prime candidate for capital punishment. "It is so horrific that death is the only appropriate punishment," Daskas said. "What these 4 kids must have gone through, having been taped up and completely defenseless as their home was ransacked. The thing that is so compelling to me is, consider what the last victim must have gone through. Victim number 4, who was duct-taped and defenseless, knowing his three friends had been shot and knowing what was about to happen. It's just unspeakable." Authorities cast the slayings as the culmination of a lifelong crime spree by Johnson. At 16, he robbed a bank. He was linked to a drug-related fatal shooting just weeks before the quadruple murders. Police also tried to link him to another murder, but Gates banned testimony about that slaying. Defense attorneys told jurors Johnson had a miserable childhood amid the gang culture of south-central Los Angeles. They also said his parents were neglectful when he was a small boy. Whipple said his client commented only briefly on the death sentence. "His comment was, 'Another day closer,'" Whipple said. "He's resigned himself to the fact he does not have control over his future." The verdict was praised by family members of the victims. "6 1/2 years; 2,456 days," David Mowen said. "I feel good for the people of Southern Nevada." "Finally we got justice," said Juanita Aguilar, mother of Talamantez. "Now our boys can rest in peace." (source: Las Vegas Review-Journal) ILLINOIS: Podiatrist Guilty of Witness Murder; Feds to Seek Death Penalty A federal court jury convicted a Chicago podiatrist Thursday for murdering a former patient to keep her from testifying against him in a health care fraud investigation. Prosecutors will seek the death penalty for Dr. Ronald Mikos, 56, of Evanston, during the penalty phase of the trial next week. "We were pretty high there," said Joseph Bunch, Brannons brother-in-law about the familys reaction to the verdict. Asked if they felt justice had been served Bunch responded, "We think so." The 6-woman, 6-man jury deliberated for about three hours before returning guilty verdicts on all 25 counts against Mikos, including witness tampering-by-way-of-murder for the shooting death of former patient Joyce Brannon. Mikos shot Brannon 3 times in the back and three times in the neck after learning of her plans to testify against him in the Medicare fraud investigation. The January 27, 2002 murder was carried out in the basement of Bethany Lutheran Church, 5942 N. Magnolia, where Brannon, 54, worked as a caretaker. Brannon was killed just days before her scheduled grand jury testimony in the case. Brannons 91-year old mother Selma and sister Janet Bunch were in the courtroom when the verdicts were announced. They wept and the sister was seen hugging a federal prosecutor. Both women could be called to testify during the sentencing phase of the trial scheduled to begin Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. before U-S District Judge Ronald Guzman. Mikos showed no reaction as the verdicts were read. Defense lawyers planned to introduce evidence and testimony about the mental competency of their client during next weeks proceedings in an effort to save Mikos from the death penalty. Attorneys said Mikos suffers from an undisclosed mental disorder. Mikos would become only the second person sentenced to death by a federal jury in Chicago since federal capital punishment statutes were amended 20 years ago. Gangster Disciples leader Darryl "Pops" Johnson was sentenced to death in 1997 for ordering the murders of 2 government informants. The jury convicted Mikos on an additional 14 counts of mail fraud and five counts each of health care fraud and obstruction of justice for defrauding Medicare out of $1.2 million. Prosecutors said Mikos billed the government for thousands of foot surgeries he never performed. Mikos denied killing Brannon. Defense lawyers argued during trial that government lacked the physical evidence to tie their client to the killing. The prosecution portrayed Mikos as a cold-blooded killer out to silence the feds key witness in the fraud case. "He was desperate. He needed to kill Joyce Brannon, and he thought he got away with it," said Assistant U-S Attorney Jeffrey Cramer during the trial. "She was a good woman, and he silenced her. But he cannot silence this evidence." According to court documents, Mikos claimed to have performed 87 bogus surgeries over a 2 year period on Brannon alone. (source: WBBM News) ************************ Suspect could face death penalty----Police say alleged robber, 20, was wearing SpongeBob mask Lionell Pruitt could face the death penalty for allegedly shooting a gas station manager Wednesday during a robbery. Pruitt hung his head and cried softly after Peoria County State's Attorney Kevin Lyons told Associate Judge Albert Purham Jr. that he reserved the right to seek the death penalty against the 20-year-old Pruitt, who stands charged with first-degree murder and armed robbery for Wednesday's shooting at the Circle K, 2312 N. Knoxville Ave. "And at this point, I can't think of any reasons why I wouldn't," the county's top prosecutor said in open court. Armed robbery is considered a "forcible felony" under state law, and because Pruitt allegedly was committing an armed robbery when Earl McCart was killed, he's eligible for the death penalty. The lanky man shuffled slowly into the 3rd-floor courtroom at the Peoria County Courthouse. For most of the hearing, he sat quietly and hung his head, looking up only when the judge or Lyons was talking. Lyons asked for, and Purham agreed, that Pruitt's bond be set at $5 million. Lyons noted Pruitt was arrested on a warrant to revoke his probation for a drug conviction. He also told Purham that Pruitt was currently on probation for a weapons charge. The prosecutor has up to 120 days to decide whether he will seek the death penalty. McCart, 44, was found by two passers-by shortly after 6 a.m. with a single gunshot wound to the chest. He was taken OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, where he died 3 hours later. According to Lyons, Pruitt had entered the gas station and demanded money. Pruitt, 1112 N. Ellis St., allegedly told police that McCart reached for the gun and it went off, striking the manager in the chest. "There is nothing in the evidence that indicates that is true," Lyons said. Rather, he said, a store surveillance video shows McCart handing money to Pruitt, who was wearing a SpongeBob SquarePants mask. Pruitt was pointing the gun at McCart and, after he was handed the money, allegedly shot McCart in the chest, Lyons said. Pruitt then fled the gas station in a car, nearly running down the two passers-by who discovered McCart. They called police and gave them information on the car and its driver, Lyons said. About 20 minutes later, Pruitt was seen in the area near the station, this time a passenger in the same car, which was now allegedly driven by his girlfriend, Roni B. Burnett, 17, 1329 E. Nebraska Ave. Officers stopped the car, and Pruitt was identified by the witnesses, Lyons said. Officers then went back to his girlfriend's home, where they found some of the money, a .38-caliber handgun and some ammunition, Lyons said. Burnett was not charged in connection with the shooting though she was arrested for failing to appear in court on a noise violation. The lack of connection between the two men and the fact that McCart apparently didn't resist indicated Pruitt had a "malignant heart," Lyons said. Pruitt is scheduled to appear in court June 2 for a preliminary hearing, though it is likely his case will go before a grand jury before then. (source: Peoria Journal Star) CONNECTICUT: Senate cuts new debate on limiting executions A little more than a week before the scheduled date of New England's 1st execution in 45 years, Senate Democrats on Thursday threw in the towel on a plan that could make it harder to send felons to death row. Senate President Pro Tempore Donald E. Williams Jr., D-Brooklyn, withdrew a planned debate on the proposal, which would automatically impose a term of life in prison without parole if a jury deadlocks over imposing the death penalty. Lawmakers opposed to the death penalty, including Sen. Bill Finch, D-Bridgeport, said they were disappointed. "We should be able to debate issues of the day," Finch said Thursday in an interview. Williams told reporters that the debate was sidelined because Democrats were concerned that it might be linked to plans to execute serial killer Michael Ross next Friday. He added that support for the proposal did not reach the 2/3 needed to overcome Gov. M. Jodi Rell's threatened veto. Earlier this legislative session, the House voted to uphold the current death penalty law. Currently, hung juries in the sentencing phase result in entirely new juries reviewing the penalties. Meanwhile, the State Supreme Court was again asked Thursday to rule whether Ross has the mental ability to decline further appeals of his sentence. Hartford attorney Thomas Groark is seeking to continue his role as a special counsel to argue an appeal that could stop the lethal injection. Groark did not challenge a lower court ruling that found Ross mentally competent. But he and his associate, Michael Shea, asked the high court to find that Ross' mental problems, specifically his narcissism, make it impossible for him to voluntarily waive his appeals. Ross has admitted killing 8 women in Connecticut and New York during the 1980s. The Supreme Court is expected to issue a decision in a few days. (source: The Connecticut Post) *************** Now's Not the Time to Change Death Penalty The death penalty has been at the forefront of state discussions and living room conversations over the past several months as residents and legislators alike come face-to-face with the first possible execution to occur in Connecticut in 45 years. (The state's last execution was conducted in 1960.) Michael Ross, serial killer-rapist, is the man who has brought this issue to a head. And, in truth, he may be the absolute worst test case possible. Ross' crimes, to which he has confessed and which occurred over a lengthy period of time, terrorizing rural eastern Connecticut, were heinous and the stuff of nightmares. After a trial found Ross guilty and the death penalty was invoked, there were years of both mandatory and Ross-initiated appeals. As time dragged on and appeals were denied and overturned, Ross was moved to say "enough." "Enough," however, has become endlessly debatable and appeal-able, and the state now finds itself in the awkward and expensive position of defending itself against its own laws. Earlier in the legislative session, state lawmakers, undoubtedly with Michael Ross specifically in mind, declined to repeal the death penalty statute. Governor Jodi Rell, again with Ross in mind, threatened to veto any such legislation. Ross declared himself ready, even willing, to die. And still the arguments continue with unseemly fishing expeditions into the treacherous waters of "competence." These are truly treacherous waters because, if competence can be endlessly debated in the context of choosing to die, can the same endless cycle be invoked when discussing competence (or insanity) in criminal trials? This raises the specter of never being able to hold anyone accountable for anything. And again, a date for execution is postponed (at press time, from May 11 to May 13). What a waste of time and resources - time and resources that might be put to much better use handling other tough justice issues, including expanding victims' services and rehabilitation opportunities for those prisoners not inclined to violence. While we believe that, ultimately, the Connecticut legislature should reconsider and abolish the death penalty, to demand that they do it it NOW, and then to tie up the courts because they WON'T, is unfair to everyone. Ross has been sentenced to death; Ross has declared a willingness to have that sentence carried out; years of appeals have been unable to overturn his sentence. So, get on with it, and then let the legacy of this sad experience carry the state forward into a reasoned and compassionate discussion of the death penalty issue without that discussion being clouded by the face and criminal career of a man who certainly makes conferring mercy about as difficult as it ever gets. (source: Editorial, The Town Times) MASSACHUSETTS: Romney goes national in bid for executions Once again, the push in on to bring capital punishment back to Massachusetts. And this time, Gov. Mitt Romney, leading the charge, thinks he has an ace in the hole - DNA. Romney has produced a bill that would allow executions to resume in the Bay State - there hasn't been one since 1947 - and would require that DNA directly link the defendant to the crime scene. The governor thinks that will push the bill over the top because it will sway legislators who have opposed the death penalty because they fear an innocent person being put to death. It may not be so simple. It is unclear how many legislators oppose the bill because of guilt/innocence doubts and how many oppose it on moral grounds. It if is a moral argument, then the legislators are unlikely ever to be swayed. But votes on the issue are usually close, and Romney and supporters can only hope that the numbers edge in their favor. The public hasn't had a chance to directly vote on the issue since 1982, when 54 % of Massachusetts voters supported bringing back the death penalty. The numbers are probably not all that much different and can change from week to week depending on whether violent crimes are in the news. When 10-year-old Jeffrey Curley was murdered by a Brockton man and another man in 1997, a wave of killing sentiment washed over the state. If anyone deserved to die, it was these two men, many people said. Yet a death penalty bill failed in the House by a single vote after Rep. John Slattery changed his vote at the last minute. It failed again, 80-73, 2 years later and hasn't been addressed since. What is Romney's urgency? We don't quite know. It could be his desire to raise his national stature with a tough-on-crime pose - and nothing does that better than being in favor of executing terrorists, cop-killers and multiple-murderers. The advances in technology also have motivated him. We think the chances of an innocent person being executed are pretty much nonexistent, despite the howling of activists who say there are many innocent people on death row. What concerns us more is that elected officials are putting themselves in the position of taking another person's life. Some lives are more worthy than others, but no life is so insignificant that it has no value at all and should be canceled. There are enough prison cells to hold people who are dangerous to society, but there is no room in the human soul for the taking of another life. (source: Editorial, Brockton Enterprise)
